Thunder 109, Hornets 90
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Forward Kevin Durant had his ninth double-double of the season with 29 points and 11 rebounds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Charlotte Hornets 109-90 on Saturday night in a matchup of teams headed in opposite directions.
The Thunder (24-10) won their fourth straight, their seventh in the last eight games, and their 13th in the last 15. The Hornets (17-16) suffered their third straight loss and have now lost six of their last eight.
The Thunder never trailed. They pulled out to a 21-6 lead and went on to lead 34-22 after one quarter, 66-54 at halftime, and 87-76 after three quarters. The Hornets scored the first 10 points of the second half to get as close as two, but that rally was short-lived as the Thunder eventually pushed the lead back up to 20.
Oklahoma City spent much of the night at the free-throw line, finishing 30 of 37.
Durant was 8-of-13 from the field and 10-of-11 from the line. Guard Russell Westbrook suffered through a rough shooting night but finished with 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds.
The Thunder also got 14 points from forward Serge Ibaka, 12 points each from guard Anthony Morrow and forward Enes Kanter, and 10 points from guard Dion Waiters.
Guard Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 32 points. Guard Jeremy Lin scored 15 and forward P.J. Hairston finished with 10.
The Hornets played without guard Nicolas Batum and center Al Jefferson. Batum has been playing with a sprained toe and finally needed a night off. Jefferson underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Thursday and is out until after the All-Star break.
The Hornets got back Lin, who had missed the previous two games with an ankle injury, and center Spencer Hawes, who had sat out four games with a back injury.
NOTES: The Hornets' last victory over the Thunder came on March 17, 2010. ... Oklahoma City was coming off a 110-106 win over Phoenix on Thursday. ... Charlotte lost at Toronto 104-94 on Friday, getting outscored 30-12 in the fourth quarter. ... Thunder F Kevin Durant came into the game with 19 straight contests with 20 or more points, the longest active streak in the NBA. ... Durant came into the game third in the NBA in scoring at 26.5 and PG Russell Westbrook was fourth at 25.9. Oklahoma State is second in the league in scoring, averaging 108.7 points. ... This is the Hornets' fifth set of back-to-backs this season. Oddly, all five have started on the road and come back to Charlotte the second night. The Hornets are now 3-2 on the second night. The Thunder return home to face Sacramento on Monday. ... Charlotte hits the road for a four-game Western trip starting Monday at Golden State. It also faces Phoenix, the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver. ... The Hornets travel to Oklahoma City on Jan. 20.